Minato's Warning, the Secret of Hyuga Ken and Uchiha Kin

"Yes, Captain!" Jasmine moved quickly. In no time, she had completed a handwritten contract scroll and summoned Minato Namikaze.

The moment Minato Namikaze entered the tent, he asked Ishihara, "High Ninja Ishihara, are you really going through with this surgery?" Instinctively, he felt that this kind of surgery carried certain risks, so he specifically asked.

It was both a confirmation and a warning... Why replace limbs that were not damaged in the first place?

"Yes, I'm certain, Minato."

"Then... all right!" He did not try to dissuade him further.

Uchiha Kin confirmed the price with Ishihara. "High Ninja Ishihara, such extensive replacements are rather expensive...

"You should know that the density of nerves in our bodies far exceeds that of ordinary people. There is roughly one nerve ending every two millimeters. Our most basic task is to connect them one by one.

"Resolving rejection is the core of this surgery, and it is my exclusive technique... It is equally complex, so...

"One arm costs two million ryo. If you also want the core muscle groups in your back, since that involves a large area of tissue, it will cost seven million ryo. If you have no objections..."

Ishihara eagerly said, "All right, nine million ryo." The price was steep, but the corresponding power was even harder to measure in money.

Uchiha Kin nodded. "Then sign it."

Ishihara signed the agreement, and Minato Namikaze added his own name as well. Uchiha Kin then began the surgery.

Most of the work was carried out by the two assistants, Jasmine and Golden Chrysanthemum.

They removed the arm and core muscle groups, using the Mystical Palm Technique to preserve their vitality. They then removed Ishihara's corresponding arm and muscle groups, temporarily severing the nerves...

Only for the remaining connections did Uchiha Kin personally step in. Yellowed nerves, like plant roots, extended from his hands and burrowed into the replacement arm and muscle groups before connecting them to Ishihara's body.

Ishihara felt as though he was brimming with strength.

The moment he stepped off the operating table, he handed Uchiha Kin a check for nine million ryo. "This is a Konoha Bank check. I hope we'll have more opportunities to work together in the future."

Uchiha Kin smiled. "Yes, indeed."

Minato Namikaze hesitated. "This kind of surgery..." He frowned. "As a friend of the Uchiha, I have to remind you—this kind of surgery is already on the edge of darkness. You must remain vigilant.

"Don't let yourself slip into darkness. This kind of surgery would be best classified as a forbidden technique and used with caution!"

"High Ninja Minato, you're worrying too much."

"That guy!" Seeing Uchiha Kin and Minato Namikaze chatting so amicably, Obito was very displeased. Hyuga Ken, meanwhile, offered his "congratulations." "Oh? Not bad. You made money from just one surgery... Had I known, I should've become a Medical Ninja too!"

Uchiha Kin said, "That would require you to be able to control your own fate."

A branch member of the Hyuga had no right to choose his own "future"—

Whether he became a ninja, what kind of ninja he became, or where he served as a ninja—those were all decided by a single word from the main family.

He had no individual will.

Even if the Byakugan was truly useful for medical work, and even if he genuinely had talent, the extent of his "rebellion" was merely being allowed to change from the Gentle Fist to the Soft Sword. That was all.

The Hyuga considered themselves a taijutsu clan, masters of the Gentle Fist among the two great systems of hard and soft taijutsu.

Thus, Hyuga descendants could only achieve anything in the single field of taijutsu and the Gentle Fist.

Hyuga Ken paused, drew a deep breath, and said, "You're as good with words as ever."

Uchiha Kin said, "Thanks for the compliment."

He changed clothes again, gave instructions to his two assistants, Jasmine and Golden Chrysanthemum, then left with Hyuga Ken.

The two strolled out of the camp before abruptly accelerating.

Both bent low, their torsos leaning forward until nearly parallel to the ground, their arms swept back like wings as they sprinted ahead.

"I really do miss the old days. Back then, you, me, and Nara Tama carried out missions together..." Hyuga Ken reminisced.

Uchiha Kin sighed along with him. "Yeah, I really miss those days. What a pity about Tama... Sigh."

Nara Tama had been assigned as their teammate by the Hokage after graduation, based on their rankings and personalities.

Unfortunately, he had died.

Nara Tama had been smart and perceptive... Unfortunately, he had been too smart and too perceptive. During one mission, he had accidentally stepped into an enemy trap and been killed.

"Yeah, what a pity. He was such a smart guy." Hyuga Ken sighed, then suddenly spotted a forest ahead. "We're here."

The two darted through the forest like grasshoppers, entering a tree hollow before long.

Flights of steps appeared within the hollow, stretching downward. Hyuga Ken activated his Byakugan and walked in front.

Behind him, Uchiha Kin casually took out a small fluorescent flashlight. Once he switched it on, the surroundings became brightly illuminated.

The walls of the cave were covered in patterns, embedded with black stones like the tangled roots of ancient trees.

Complex and intertwined.

This was clearly a mechanism designed to prevent the Byakugan from spying inside.

Although the Byakugan could still see through it, when someone was actually within this space, the layers upon layers of accumulated patterns formed camouflage that concealed the human figure.

Uchiha Kin raised a brow. "You copied me?"

Hyuga Ken asked, "It's useful, isn't it?"

"Pay the licensing fee!"

After descending deep underground, they arrived at a natural cavern. The space inside was vast, with a cold wind blowing through it.

Inside the cavern stood several tents disguised to conceal their purpose: cultivating Byakugan. Hyuga Ken entered one of them. "I've already dealt with everyone here. After the eyes were successfully cultivated."

The tent was dimly lit. On a table sat a glass jar filled with solution, and inside were two eyeballs.

Byakugan!

Their sclerae were white as snow, their irises frosty as ice, giving them an exceptionally cold, metallic texture.

"They really are a beautiful pair of eyes..." Uchiha Kin could not help but sigh.

"Kin, let's begin," Hyuga Ken said. "This is our first step toward freedom—when I take control of the Hyuga Clan, I'll make the Caged Bird a thing of the past."

Uchiha Kin did not believe a single word of that bullshit. Once Hyuga Ken became the Hyuga Clan Head, he would make the Caged Bird a thing of the past?

No!

Why would he do that?

It was not as if he still had the Caged Bird!

Uchiha Kin smiled. "Mm, I'm really looking forward to that day. Shall we begin the surgery right away?"

"Of course," Hyuga Ken said. "I've been unable to wait any longer."